I need a criminal defense lawyer!! Please help!!

If it's the same vehicle, you can't be punished for both stealing it (California Vehicle Code §10851) and possessing stolen property (California Penal Code §496). District Attorneys often charge cases "in the alternative," meaning they throw all the possible charges at the wall to see what sticks.

Either count carries the possibility of a three year state prison sentence. Fortunately, both are also "wobblers," meaning the charges can be reduced to a misdemeanor at a preliminary hearing, at the time of sentencing, and even after you've completed probation.

Without a lot more information, it's impossible to know whether you can avoid jail. You say it's your first felony, but do you have a lot of misdemeanor convictions? Were they theft convictions? Are you already on probation?

As hard as it may be, the best advice is to take a deep breath, calm down and don't talk to anybody about your case unless it's your lawyer. In your area, I'd highly recommend the Maas Law Offices in Fairfield. If you can't afford an attorney, ask the judge to appoint a public defender for you.

People often badmouth public defenders, but they're often very good lawyers.... just overworked. Still, some folks would rather take advice from strangers on the Internet than somebody who works sixty hours a week in their own county, trying to get the best results for their clients.

Good Luck!
Bob Marshall
Chico, California

I have been doing criminal litigation for 35 years. Yours is not the most serious charge out there. But whether you go to jail may well depend on whether you have prior theft convictions, whether misdemeanor or not. I also think highly of public defenders. They are highly specialized lawyers with oodles of experience. Unfortunately they also have oodles of clients, which could impact the result if they are unable to spend sufficient time on your case. If you are contacting attorneys here because of that concern, then I think that is a sensible thing.

I do litigate in Martinez. It is not far and I charge no more to go there than to take a case in San Francisco. If you want a free consultation to see if you can afford a private attorney, please feel free to call me. Here is a link to my web site so you can review my qualifications. My contact data is also there.

http://dinday.com/results.htm

and

http://dinday.com/info01.htm